The Aedra and Daedra War
by In-The-Hunt
Summary: The War will consume all of Tamriel. Maybe all of Nirn. Sides have been chose and unlikely alliances have been formed. Now the fate of the world rests in very, very unlikely hands. Can these "heroes" overcome the darkness that is to come.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Prologue

Hall of the Vigilant

Vigilant Brandr

Yesterday Brandr was laughing and having a good time with his fellow vigilants. Now he's running for his life. And it wasn't even noon yet.

It had started like any other day. Him and Carcette had been training in the basement. The others were off doing whatever they do. While they were training Carcette had suddenly stopped and sat down on the ground. She called him over to her. It seemed she had something on her mind. He sat against the wall and prepared for an in-depth conversation, it had happened before.

He asked her with a concerned tone in his voice, "What's wrong?"

She answered, "Nothing." He wasn't convinced one bit.

"It's okay, you know you can tell me anything." Recently they had become very close. They had even started courting each other. They both wore identical Amulets of Mara.

"Ya, you're right. It's just that the secret I'm carrying is very serious. Life changing in fact. Stendarr has spoken with to me. He's told me of a coming war, one that will change the fate of Tamriel, maybe even Nirn. The burden of this secret has become too heavy for my shoulders to bare."

"We can share the load. Only if your ready though."

She gave him a stare that he didn't recognize. He could see the sadness in it, but there was something else in it. Maybe it was regret, maybe it was pity. He couldn't be sure. He hoped it wasn't the latter.

"The Aedra and the Daedra are going to tear the mortal world apart. They've been content just to tolerate each other but something has happened, I don't know what, but they are at war now. Sides are being chosen. Right now only minor skirmishes have taken place. Both sides are recruiting. Stendarr told me all of this and more. He said the key to the war was to turn the blade in the darkness from its wayward path. That no matter how evil the blade may seem, light can always purge the darkness within."

Suddenly there was scream from outside. Brandr and Carcette both sprinted up the stairs to find out why someone had yelled out. The vampires had come. The number of vampires surprised Brandr. He had thought their numbers were too small and too unorganized to stage an attack on the Hall. Maybe that was what they wanted people to think. It had certainly worked.

The vigilants were outnumbered by at least 5 to 1. They would still put up an honorable fight though, even if they were going to go down. Brandr was a Nord after all. As he stepped up to fight a vampire, Carcette beat him to it. She destroyed the head of the vampire with her steel warhammer.

She turned to him and said one word with so much force it startled him, "Run."

"What about you."

"My place is here. You must follow Stendarr's words. You must find whatever he's looking for."

So now Brandr ran with with that weight on his shoulders. He ran past both vampires and vigilants. He ran for miles. He just ran and ran and ran until the light of the sun had been replaced by night. He had to find the blade in the darkness.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: A Meeting on the Throat of the World

Throat of the World

Kunnilzshun

On High Hrothgar Kunnilzshun sat with his fellow dragons. Actually he circled overhead, there wasn't enough space on the Throat for all the dragons to sit. The older and more revered dragons sat with Paarthurnax on the snow. The old dragon had summoned them to talk. Paarthurnax wouldn't have called them all together if it wasn't for something important. A gathering of dragons this size hadn't happened since the rule of Alduin during the Dragon War. Of course Kunnilzshun hadn't participated in the war, it seemed that Alduin deemed it not worthy his time to resurrect him. The dragons ruling system was based on power, which was why Alduin had been the ruler, but if had been based on arrogance Alduin would've still been the ruler of the dragons. By a long shot.

Many important dragons had come for the meeting. The most noteworthy were Paarthurnax and Odahviing. A few other recognizable dragons sat on the peak, but most of the dragons were young like Kunnilzshun. They had yet to prove that their thuum matched their spirit and that they were not to be trifled with. Most of the older dragons had either been killed by the dovahkiin or weren't resurrected by Alduin before the dragonborn had defeated him. Thank goodness the dragonborn hasn't been seen for a year. Kunnilzshun had heard stories from the other dragons of the dovahkiin's ferocity in battle and of his immorality. It reminded him of a dragon.

As he went through these thoughts a voice sliced through them like a dragon's claw sliced through mortal flesh. Paarthurnax was starting his speech. Finally. Patience wasn't a quality that dragons prized very highly.

"Hello fellow dragons I'd like to begin with thanking you for coming." Paarthurnax was always so polite and humble. It made Kunnilzshun wonder how he could be Alduin's brother. "I have not called you here to talk about trivial things. The things that will be said here will change the fate of every living creature, including ourselves. I am talking about war."

Suddenly a rather rude dragon piped in, "Why should our lives be in peril just because of a war? I have seen countless wars pass by, and I have fought in countless wars. Why should this one be any different than those ones? Why should I concern myself about this war?" The dragon looked smug after he finished his speech. Other dragons started to whisper in hush voices.

It looked as though Paarthurnax had been defeated in this argument, yet he still looked calm. He always looked calm and wise and always looked as though he was thinking. Maybe that was why he was their ruler now and not Alduin.

Paarthurnax never even spoke stride, "Because my friend, this is no ordinary war. This is a war between the Aedra and the Daedra. A war that will tear apart all planes of existence. Even the planes that are incomprehensible to all but the most powerful of beings. This why we should concern ourselves with this war. Because sooner or later this war will concern itself with us."

The dragon now had a look of disbelief about the new information, but also a look of shame from his defeat by Paarthurnax's tongue. Kunnilzshun knew that old dragon always had a trick stowed away.

Suddenly Kunnilzshun had a thought. He was intimidated by the number of dragons around him but he spoke his mind to Paarthurnax anyways, "If the Aedra and Daedra are truly at war, then how could it affect us. I mean we're in totally different planes of existence. The only way they could come here was if they connected the planes together, like the Oblivion Crisis. But something like that couldn't happen twice." Kunnilzshun suddenly felt unconvinced about his last statement.

Paarthurnax spoke to him in his usual calm demeanor, " What you say is true. The only way they could get to the mortal plane would by connecting their plane to ours. That is where your truth ends though. Something like the Oblivion Crisis could happen again and is already in progress. My father, Akatosh, told me of the Daedra's plans. They mean to connect the planes. And use the Thalmor as their tool. I have told all of you this because I hope to enlist you in the war against the vile Daedra. Now all those willing to fight, roar your approval to the divines." Over half of the dragons roared, including Kunnilzshun, but still some stayed silent.

Paarthurnax spoke out once again, "For the dragons that haven't roared, I take this as refusal to aid the Aedra."

Now a huge, green dragon talked to Paarthurnax, "What you are talking about sounds like a suicide mission. Plus, it means fighting alongside men, mer, and beasts. The very same mortals that would be ecstatic to see the dragon race extinct. What you ask is impossible. I will go and take whatever Dovah that wish to come with me. We will leave the Aedra and the Daedra to their own devices."

Paarthurnax looked both saddened and disappointed by his response, "I understand, I will not force you to stay and fight the Daedra. Leave, if that is your with."

While this group left some of the dragons that had not accepted to aid the Aedra were still here. Kunnilzshun didn't want to know why the they were still here.

One of the dragons stepped forward, "Our race is full is so consumed with power, that power is the only thing that keeps it together. You would have us save the mortals. And for what? So they can hate us. We will not aid the Aedra, and neither will we hide from combat like the others. We shall fight for the Daedra." And with that the rest of the naysayers left.

Now the dragons were divided. They were weak. About 5/8 of the dragons had stayed with Paarthurnax, 2/8 had gone to fight with the Daedra, and 1/8 had gone off to not fight at all. This wasn't good at all.

Suddenly Paarthurnax turned to Kunnilzshun, " You there, you remember when I said I had talked to Akatosh. Well he told me more than what I spoke of. He said that light must find the blade in the dark and save it in it's time of need. That the light must shine brighter than even it knew it could shine, if it wished to save the blade. You are that light. You must find the blade, for the fate of existence."

Kun nilz shun = light purge cleanse


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Somewhere Over the Pale

Kunnilzshun

He knew not what direction he should head in, only that he should move quickly. He said his farewells to Paarthurnax and to the other dragons and set off. Before he left Paarthurnax told him he should head towards the North. When he asked him why, Paarthurnax said that he had a gut feeling. It was good to know that he wasn't going on a wild goose chase.

He soared for many uneventful miles. As he traveled his mind also wandered. He thought of a great many things, the weakening of the dragons, the coming war, and his place in the potential war. His was distracting by a coughing spasm he had, or rather the smoke that caused the coughing. Underneath him he could see what appeared to be a house on fire. While he pondered what this could mean movement from the west caught his attraction. It seemed a large group of people were running away the house, but upon closer inspection he could tell they weren't running away, they were chasing. Kunnilzshun immediately flew after the pursuit. The lone runner appeared to be wearing robes, most likely a vigilant of Stendarr, and the pursuers were wearing an odd armor and had glowing glowing eyes. Vampires. Whatever Kunnilzshun could do he had to save the vigilant, who appeared to a Nord.

His first instinct was to dive bomb the vampires and burn them to death with his shout, however he could not risk burning the whole forest down. Luckily there was a clearing up ahead where he could confront them. The Nord was running out of breath but he had to keep running to gain separation from the ever advancing vampires. When they finally entered the clearing Kunnilzshun let the vampires get far enough in until retreating was no longer a option. Once Kunnilzshun thought the distance was right he landed in between the Nord and vampires.

The vampires, who were bewildered, shouted at him, "What are you doing here monster. This isn't your fight. This is between Molag Bal and Stendarr.

For an answer Kunnilzshun showed them the power of Akatosh, " YOL TOOR SHUL!" The vampires were dead before they hit the ground. It was almost disturbing how much he enjoyed killing the vampires. Almost. He turned around and spoke in the mortal tongue to the Nord that was cowering behind a medium-sized rock, "Do not worry, son of Skyrim, I am not here to harm you. Why were these spawn of Coldharbour chasing you?"

The Nord tentatively rose from the rock, "They are soldiers of the Daedra army. The Aedra and Daedra are going to fight if it isn't prevented. I don't know why they wanted to kill us that bad, our force wouldn't make a difference in a large scale battle."

"They were trying to undermine Stendarr's influence in the mortal world. Think about it, you are now the only true connection he has with Mundus." The vigilant just sat their in silence so Kunnilzshun continued, "Anyway... I'm also a recruit of the war, as are you, but we fight for the Aedra. I was wondering if you could help me with something. I'm trying to find..."

Kunnilzshun's speech was interrupted by an explosion from the sky. A beam of light come down to the ground and formed a ball of pure light. A miniature dragon of fire stepped from this light and announce itself, "Hello Kunnilzshun, my son, hello Brandr, my ally. I am Akatosh, chief deity of the nine divines. I know this is not my normal form, but it was all I could muster, times are trying. Since you two have finally been joined together I have a mission for you. My son, the dragonborn, is the "blade" that both of you are searching for. He is in grave danger. The Thalmor have aligned themselves with the Daedra and are on route to kill the dragonborn. I need you two to travel to Falkreath Hold. In the forest you find a small cabin where he had decided to live for the past year. Once you save him, explain the situation to him, I trust he will know the right steps to take. Do not fail me, all of our lives depend on you. Good luck. And one more thing... smile, this is exciting." And with that Akatosh left, not allowing either Kunnilzshun or Brandr to say something.

Kunnilzshun spoke first, "Well I guess we know where to go."

"I guess we do." Brandr laughed nervously after he spoke. It sounded my like a whimper. At least he was trying to take Akatosh's advice.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 3: The Blade in the Dark

Somewhere in Falkreath Hold

Athell Stormblade

Things had just gotten too chaotic for Athell. Instead of try and weather the love and hatred that came from the people of Skyrim, he decided to just vanish. Athell was just a simple Altmer when he discovered he was the dragonborn, and when the Nord's of Skyrim discovered that a High Elf was the prophesied dragonborn of legend, well things didn't turn out too well. Instead of thanking him for vanquishing Alduin, they despised him for being a High Elf. It's the Thalmor's fault that Tamriel holds such distrust for all High Elves, Athell knows first hand what the Thalmor are capable of and what they plan to do to Tamriel. He used to be a foot soldier in the Aldmeri Dominion, but once he learned of their dark intentions he left to Skyrim and the rest is history, literally.

Athell had built a small cabin in Falkreath Hold and had lived there for about a year. He ate only the animals he hunted or trapped and grew his own vegetables and ingredients. The stream nearby provided fresh drinking water and on the rare occasion he had to go to Falkreath, which was very rare, he wore an old cloak and hood to conceal his identity. The life of peace of calm was absolute bliss to him, but it turns out the most calmest calms leads to the most violent storms.

There was no warning when they attacked, only chaos. They had tried to sneak into his house,but the floor creaked underneath them. Athell woke to find Thalmor agents entering his house, most likely trying to kill him. He leapt to his feet at once, at the same time he grabbed Dawnbreaker from beneath his pillow.

The closet elf was so stunned by Athell's fast reactions that Athell was able to cut him down with almost no effort. The next Thalmor came to his senses after seeing his comrade die. Athell slashed trying to decapitate him, but the elf blocked the move, however, the power of Athell's swing was so great that the elf fell over backwards into his fellow soldiers. Athell knew that it was too late to use the door as a choke point, he had to somehow take out the about two and a half score of elven soldiers. Five more elves challenged him, and five more elves fell, defeated by his blade. Although things were going his way he couldn't keep this up forever, these thoughts entered his mind just as he heard the roar of a dragon. The last thing he needed now was a dragon looking to prove it's mettle against the famed dragonborn.

The wall opposite of Athell was torn away revealing a young, golden dragon. The dragon could have used the fire breath shout to kill all of them, but instead used it's powerful jaws and sharp claws. On the mysterious dragon's back he could also see a young Nord that appeared to be a vigilant of Stendarr. Athell was utterly confused. He put these thoughts to the side and charged the Thalmor agents who had turned their attention on the dragon. Athell cut down all that stood before him, none could withstand his battle fury. The young Nord was now off the dragon and was engaging the elves. He looked like he could handle himself in a fight. Soon enough the fifty original elves were reduced to zero. Athell took a second to catch his breath.

There was an awkward silence before the young Nord finally spoke, "Uhhhhh, are you the dragonborn?"

Of course that was why they were here. They probably had a new quest for him. "Why yes I am. Why are so shocked, isn't that why you're here for?"

"Ya, its just I didn't expect you to be a, uhhh-"

"High elf. Don't worry, I get that a lot. I'm more Nord than Altmer anyway. So what do you two fine beings need from me."

The dragon spoke for the first time, "Hello Dovahkiin, it seems you have been in the dark for far too long. My name is Kunnilzshun and my small friend here is named Brandr. We were sent by our respective deities to enlist your help in a coming war. Before you dismiss our requests you must know this will be like no other war if it comes to fruition. The Daedra mean to connect all the planes together, using Mundus as a bridge between Oblivion and Aetherius, and recreate the Oblivion Crisis, except it won't be one Daedra Prince invading Mundus this time, it will be all of them. Both sides are recruiting, as you must know now the Thalmor have chosen the Daedra. We have come to you so you can unite the people of Tamriel."

Athell was no longer shocked by things of impossible measure instead he decided to take them in stride, " OK, just give me a second to pack."

"Wait a second. You don't have any questions?"

"Nope. These things are a regular occurance with me. Just let me get my things from my basement."

"Well... OK then. See you in a little while."

Athell had quite the collection of powerful items in his basements. He put on his Deathbrand armor and strapped Bloodscythe and Soulrender to his belt. He also strapped the Blade of Woe and Mehrunes' Razor onto his torso. On his back went the Bloodskal Blade and the Staff of Magnus, which together formed an "x". Through this "x" he put his enhanced dwarven crossbow along with an assortment of expoding dwemer bolts of fire, ice, and shock to his waist. On Athell's hands he put on Hircin's Ring, Muiri's Ring, the Ring of Pure Mixtures, Ring of Bloodlust, Ring of Instinct, Ring of Namira, Ring of the Hunt, and the Ring of the Moon. On his neck sat the Gauldur Amulet. For Brandr he grabbed his Ancient Falmer Armor, Auriel's bow and shield, some sumhalllowed elven arrows for the bow, and also his trusty Dawnbreaker. Hopefully this would be enough.

As Athell exited his basement he offered his equipment to Brandr, "Here this stuff is for you." Brandr was sitting on the ground with a look of horror. "What's wrong, all this stuff was made to destroy evil and cleanse the world."

"No its not that. I just found this note in one of the Thalmor commanders. Here, read it." Brandr handed Athell the note.

It read:

_To Vestro,_

_Your mission is to kill the nuisance, Athell. He is a Altmer that resides in the forests of Falkreath Hold. Consider him extremely dangerous. Once he has been destroyed report to our hidden base outside of the plains of Whiterun. Our plans to destroy the Snow Throat are coming to fruition. This is the last tower that seperates the planes, do not falter, for we are almost there. Our Daedra lords will reward us greatly and we will replace the Aedra as gods. Do not fail us, Athell could potentially be a huge problem in our plans. The next time I see you we will be gods my old friend._

_Your Steadfast Commander,_

_E_

"Wow, I'm flattered. They think so highly of me. This doesn't matter, we already knew what their plans were. We just have to keep moving forward."

Kunnilzshun answered him, "So what is our next step."

"Well you wanted me to unite the people of Tamriel. I can't do that by myself, but I have friends that could each convince others who then could convince more. So I guess I have to call a meeting. I know just the place too, my old, never-used house, Lakeview Manor. Now, who to invite?"


End file.
